Marie
by Maddie1506
Summary: Marie Jackson is a second generation demigod. Daughter of Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase. During her first summer officially as a camper at Camp Half-Blood hill, mysterious things start to pop up around camp. Everything points to Marie as being the subject of those objects. Who or what is trying to get her attention? And is it more dangerous than she expects?
1. Prologue

Prologue

Percy Jackson didn't know exactly what to do. He sat in the apartment that he and Annabeth shared, listening for any sign of distress from their bedroom. The Apollo girls were inside, keeping Annabeth as calm as possible. There were many things that Percy had faced throughout his life. He wasn't old, but old compared to most demigods. Twenty-four didn't seem old enough for this though. Fatherhood was on its way. And the fact that Annabeth was in there, alone, facing something that he couldn't help with terrified him more than he wanted to admit.

They didn't know the gender. It's their first child, they wanted it to be a surprise. There are doctors and equipment in New Rome, but it wasn't like a full-fledged hospital. Most birth's happened at home, unless something bad happened.

"It'll be fine Percy, don't worry." Annabeth was standing in their kitchen, her back to him. He could see even from behind that motherhood was changing her body. Her back bent to carry the weight of the baby. Her blonde hair was towered on her head in a bun. "Everything will be fine, the baby and I, will be fine."

She turned to him and he could see the fatigue in her face. She kept up most of the night tossing and turning. She was nine months along. Anytime the baby could be here, and Percy felt the excitement and fear creep into him everyday they got closer.

"I know I know," he said smiling at her. "I'm still voting on it being a girl."

Annabeth smirked, "It's a boy, I know it." She walked around the counter to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He could feel the bump against his side, he placed a hand on it. Beneath his fingers was his child, his son or daughter. Someone who was created by them, but worse someone that will be burden by their troubles. Being the son of Poseidon made life hard. Annabeth never had it harder. _But, _he minded himself, _this child will have both parents. Both parents that will know how to keep them safe._

"He's gonna look just like you," she muttered against his neck. "Little boy with dark hair and green eyes."

"Gods I hope not," he chuckled, "he needs to be more like you, less like me."

"Oh, shut up seaweed brain." She laughed and kiss him, "whoever they are, they're lucky to have you as a father."

Now it was the moment. Labor started early Saturday morning, now it was Saturday night. Percy had spent the past ten hours standing beside Annabeth, holding her hand as contractions made her groan. It got to be too much around five, and around seven the girls decided that Percy needed some water. He sat in the kitchen, knowing that he needed to go back.

"Labor could go on for hours," one of the girls had said, "it might be a little longer. Go get some water, relax. We'll need you later."

Annabeth had looked so pale and tired, she hardly seemed to notice if he was there or not. Sweat dripped down her face, and she drifted in and out of sleep and moaning. It was starting to be too much. Percy feared that something could be wrong. He wasn't the most educated in birth, he'll admit, but how much longer could it really go on before they decided something was wrong?

Then he heard the scream, it was sharp and it was enough to make him run back to the room. A girl was walking out as soon as he got there, "It's time to push, let's go."

"He's so pretty," Annabeth smiled and kissed the forehead of the baby. Of course, he was bald, and his eye color wouldn't come in for another few weeks. But, the baby was a boy for sure. He slept against Annabeth's chest. Both of them were exhausted from the past twelve hours, and Percy felt like he might pass out right there.

He gently laid in hand on the head of his son. He was warm and soft. Baby fuzz covered the boys head, and it reminded Percy of dandelion fuzz.

"He's so peaceful," Percy whispered.

"Gods he's perfect Percy," Annabeth seemed close to tears. "What do you want to name him?"

They had a few names picked out. Names were a hard thing, they carried a lot of weight. They had a lot of names that they knew they wanted, and Percy knew what weighed on Annabeth's mind. She wanted her son to have Luke's name. A name that had haunted them for years, but a name Percy knew meant a lot more than revenge and violence.

"What about Lucas?" Percy said. It was close to Luke, but it was something that this boy could make his own.

"Lucas Jackson," Annabeth said, "I like it."

It was a year later before Marie was born. This one was easier on Annabeth, and Percy was grateful. Sally Jackson had decided that since she missed the birth of her first grandchild she wasn't going to miss the birth of the second. She cradled Luke in her arms, as Percy waiting for one of the girls to call him in for the pushing. He wasn't any less nervous this time. At least he knew what to expect.

Lucas was an easy baby, didn't sleep all night but he at least fell asleep easily. Another one was going be the hard thing.

Marie Jackson came out with dark hair. Which made Annabeth happy, she wanted babies that looked like Percy for some reason. He was happy that his baby girl was healthy. She smiled at his first thing. He held her while Annabeth slept, and she snoozed in his arms. She was beautiful, like nothing he had ever seen. Different than Lucas, Lucas was adorable and smart for a baby. But Marie slept and Percy could tell that she held the world in her fingers.

Beck came two years later. The kids stayed at Percy's mom's place. He came on a winter morning. And cried throughout the night. Annabeth slept while Percy tried to keep the boy settled. It was hard, Beck didn't like to sleep alone and he didn't like to be left with other people. Getting a babysitter was almost impossible. But they managed.

The kids grew, and Percy saw Annabeth more and more in Lucas. He smiled like her, and had the brains of an Athenian child. Marie was more like him according to Annabeth. She'd beg to have a bath almost everyday, staying hours in the water. Talking and chatting about fish friends and animals that she was going to meet. Beck stayed glued to Annabeth until he was five. Keeping her within eyesight almost at all times. Percy felt the jealously that his youngest son would rather sit with him mom than him. But he felt better when Beck would beg for a bedtime story from his dad.

They spent summers at Camp Half-Blood, but Annabeth and Percy kept the kids at Camp Jupiter. It was hard for Percy, he wanted to kids to grow around the Greeks. Not that he had any problem with the Romans. They had elementary school and classes that taught the kids how to protect themselves. It was more than Percy every got as a kid, and he was thankful. Frank and Hazel were always there, their daughter was born the same year as Marie. They grew up together. Piper and Jason brought their boys around sometimes when they went to visit Piper's dad. Leo and Calypso had a daughter a year younger than Marie.

The kids grew up together, and it was more than Percy could have ever asked for. Kids with friends, friends that were the sons and daughters of his best friends. It was an amazing life. But, Percy constantly felt the worry that something could go wrong.

"It'll be fine Percy," Annabeth would tell him at night. After he had spent a few hours tossing and turning. Worry keeping him awake. "They're trained, they're our children. They'll know what to do if the time comes."

Percy didn't want the time to come.


	2. Chapter One - Marie

Chapter One

It's dark outside. Like darker than I was expecting. The trees surrounding me are tall, taller than they seemed in the daylight and there isn't even a moon to guide the little path we're following through the bushes. My flashlight is the only thing keeping me away from eating dirt from the uneven ground. My brother is behind me, I can hear him cursing a few times as he trips over the rocks. He's not as agile as I am.

Logan is the only thing keeping me from running back home. Back to the safety and warmth of my bed. He's a good foot taller than me, even though were supposed to be the same age. He's forging ahead through the foliage, crushing limbs with his body as he goes. I keep my flashlight on the ground. I can imagine him though, smiling as we get closer to this supposed lake.

"Why don't we go?" He questioned us as we sat around the bonfire that night. It was already starting to get dark, and I could hear my parents and his laughing and talking in the kitchen a few feet away. The little kids were in there too, drove away from the chill that was starting to seem through my sweater.

"Why would we do that?" My brother, Luke was a year older than I. Taller, and wiser. He was a lot like our mom, but he wore the same green eyes as me and my dad. He was the reason where I was the heart.

Logan shrugged, "why wouldn't we? It's something to do. Unless you want to sit inside the rest of the night and play monopoly." He rose an eyebrow, making it a challenge. I was always down to adventure, the night was young and the trees were calling me to explore. But, I knew the dangers, and I knew the parent would never let us escape into the night. That's when everything bad happened.

Luke didn't say anything to that. He looked down into the fire and let the stick he was holding catch fire. "I'm down," I say, "but we gotta sneak out if we want to do it. Mom and Dad will never let us just go wander at night."

There was another boy there too, Logan's twin. Kota wore the same expression as Logan. They were identical, but one could always tell them apart. Logan wore his hair messy. Brown curls always covered his forehead and his eyes were brighter. Kota was more clean, a close cut made his curls stay under control. He was the calm and Logan was the storm.

I could see that Luke didn't want to go, he looked wearily at the trees. Thinking of all the hidden monsters that could be waiting. We knew this place was supposed to be safe, that's why our parents brought us here. A vacation island. Someplace that my Dad and Leo had found ages ago. Even then, the darkness seemed to hold different possibilities. I didn't see them as all bad. But, Luke must've.

"I don't know guys," he said. "I don't feel right about this."

"We'll I'm going," Logan smirked. His smile was wide and it took up his face.

"I'm going," I said, nudging Luke with my shoulder. "It's safe. Isn't that why Mom and Dad brought us here? We're allowed to have fun sometimes."

"I'm having fun," he said as his stick burned.

"I'm going," Kota said. Standing up he stretched. He was tan, just like Logan. They both kept their mother's skin color. A richer tan than anything I could achieve. "We can go after everyone goes to sleep."

"What if we get caught?" I look over my shoulder at the house behind us. It's lit and the laughter is getting louder. I can make out the individual voices that drift out the door.

"Oh well, they'll just send us back to our rooms with a lecture." Logan follows his brother and starts walking toward that house. "Just set your alarms for one."

Somehow, Luke decided to come. I'm not sure if it was the lure of the adventure or the responsibility of keeping me out of trouble. Either way I'm happy that he's here. We always used to go on adventures away from the family. Never too far, but it reminds me of when we were younger and he stopped being such a nanny.

We walk for what seems like an hour, Logan reassures it's not too far. "I found it when we were here last fall. Kota wouldn't come but I know it's not too far now."

I declined to mention how it was almost impossible to see, let alone find a stupid lake out here. How could he remember how to get there in the darkness? But, Logan forged ahead, and I followed. Allowing my steps to follow his.

Eventually the trail widened, and the smell of water was hard to avoid. It was stagnant, I could tell from this far, but not uncleanly so. The water was like a beacon to me, pulling me toward it and I knew that Luke felt the same. The cursing had stopped.

"We made it," Logan breathed. The trail spilled us out on the beach of the lake. It was less of a lake and more like a large pond. Lillies floated on the water, and the sound of frogs filled the air. It couldn't tell if it was my eyes or the lack of trees, but the night seemed lighter too. Like the water gave away a faint glow that made the night a haunting blue.

"This can't be a normal pond," Luke muttered. Taking a step toward the water. He let his sneakers touch the surface. "It feels like it's alive."

"Okay, grandson of Poseidon." Laughed Kota. "We get it, you feel the water. It's just a normal lake."

"Pond," corrected Luke.

"Okay, pond. But we went swimming in it in September, it's fine." Logan let himself strip off his t-shirt. "Let's go."

But I could feel it too, like a heartbeat that pulsed through the water. Maybe a nymph or something was connected to this water. It wasn't a rare thing. The night was warm, and I was sticky from the hike here.

I followed suit and stripped into a sports bra and shorts. Luke watched the pond, not following the rest of us. It wasn't like him to decline a swim. The water didn't feel menacing. It felt warm and soft. Inviting.

"Luke," I'm standing next to him now. My feet in the water. It's warm, baked from the summer sun. "It's fine, it feels fine. Anyway what can hurt us in the water?" Dad had put us in the water almost as soon as we could breathe. The water is like a second home to us.

"Okay fine," he muttered. "I'm going."

Logan was wading into the water. He was the grandson of Aphrodite and Jupiter. Roman and Greek, a strange demigod. Everyone knew that. He seemed to like it like that, he used his weird blood to surprise people even more. Liking the water was another strange trait for someone like him.

We took the night swimming through the water. Luke and I took our own adventure to swim to the bottom of the pond. The water was warm, but deeper down it was cold. It didn't affect us of course, but the fallen trees and the mud at the bottom made it look like a scene from a horror movie. It gave me the creeps, but Luke found a liking by looking between the logs and hunting for frogs and fish.

"There's no fish here," the water carried his voice funny. It came in waves.

"It's a pond, that's not too surprising."

"Still," he motioned toward the surface. I could see the Grace twins swimming above us. They kept trying to drive down to get to us but gave us after about ten feet and shot back toward the surface. I could hear their voices.

"Hey!" Kota's voice, "Luke, Marie. We should go."

"Shit," Logan now, "Dad's here. Guys!"

One look and me and Luke shot back up. Kota and Logan's faces were pale, and there on the beach danced a few flashlights.

"Shit," muttered Luke.


	3. Chapter Two - Marie

Chapter Two

I could see a rescue crew standing on the shore of the pond. Mom and Dad stood out of course. Mom looked furious. Her eyes were like raging storms. Dad's eyebrows were pushed together, but I could see relief in his eyes. Still, the scowl wasn't nice.

We swam back to the shore. All of the parents were there, expect for Aunt Hazel and Calypso. They were probably back making sure none of the other kids escaped into the night.

"What do you think you were doing?" Mom's voice was calm, which made it even more terrifying. "Do you understand how terrified we were?"

She says terrified instead of worried, because that's what they were, terrified.

"Even you, Luke," Luke was standing beside me now. Dry just like me, staring at the ground. He was supposed to be the level one. "I thought you could keep your sister out of trouble."

"Mom, I couldn't stop them, I came to keep them safe." Mom's eyes were focused on me now. Arms crossed she was a presence that reminded us that mother was the boss.

"I don't care, you know how dangerous it is for you two to go off. You didn't even have a sword or anything!"

"It's supposed to be safe here Mom," I say, "you said it was."

"I know what I said, but still." She places her hand on my shoulder, it's warm. "It's still not safe or smart to go disappearing into the night."

"You guys know a lot of things can happen," Dad isn't scowling anymore. He's staring out toward the pond, his eyes watching and weary. He feels the weirdness too. "This place doesn't feel right, I don't want you guys here."

That was the end of the conversation, my parents start walking toward the house. I can hear the conversation that is being held with the Grace's. Uncle Jason's shoulders are square and tight, but Aunt Piper is doing most of the scolding. Uncle Frank and Leo are slowly walking around the pond. I can't make out the words they are saying.

We didn't say much on the way back home. The house was lit when we made it back. A black head popped up in the one of the window. Then ducked when he say the flashlights.

"Beck is awake," my mother groans. My younger brother is eleven. Not young, but two years younger than me. Mom still treats him like a child.

He was sitting in the blue armchair in the livingroom, pretending to sleep. "We know you're awake," I mutter and flick his forehead.

"Mar, don't do that." My mother sits down on the couch. Rubbing her fingers on her temples, we gave her another headache. Dad gets her a glass of water before sitting down beside her. They look like a normal couple. Both in their late thirties. You can see the sign of aging in their faces, wrinkles around their eyes and mouths, a little gray starting to streak through Dad's black hair. Other than that, they both look young. Strong bodies from training and keeping up with us.

"I'm sorry Mom," I say, and I am. I didn't think we'd get caught. And I didn't think about how it would worry them if they did catch us.

"You guys know how dangerous it is," my Dad isn't the one that usually does the scolding. But, he's given this lecture before. Being demigods, monsters out there were always hunting us. Our blood is strong, we smell like the ocean and the blood of Athena isn't subtle either. "Anything could be anywhere, just don't do it again."

"Head up to bed guys, all of you." Even Beck get's out of his chair and follows up the stairs. Luke gives me one last 'I told you so' looks before disappearing into the guys bunks.

The summer house is large, built for the eight parents and the seven kids. A girls bunk and a boys bunk takes up the upstairs. I step into the girls' one now. Finding myself face-to-face with Aunt Hazel. She's a small woman, sitting on her daughters bunk. Bree is just as old as I am. Though, less inclined to escape in the night with the rest of the older kids. She's sitting up in her bed, they were sharing a conversation before I came in.

"Thank gods you're safe," Hazel gets up and hugs me tight. She smells like spices, cumin and pepper. "You had us so worried."

"I'm sorry," I mutter, "we just wanted to go look at the pond."

"I know sweetheart, but you know better than that." I nod my head. I've had enough lecturing and knowing looks from adults tonight. Guilt is weighing heavily on me. Hazel seems to see that, she's kind and she knows not to push. "Get to sleep, Lara is passed out still. Nothing can wake that girl. I'll see you girls in the morning."

She waits until I'm up in my bunk to shut the light off and close the door. Bree doesn't speak until she's gone.

"You know I would've come with if you guys had asked," she's quiet but I can hear the sadness in her voice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think you'd want to go." Bree is quiet, set on staying close to her parents and keeping an eye on the younger kids. She always backed out whenever we asked her to go on things when we were younger. We didn't think that'd change over a year.

"Well I did," that's the last thing she says. Leaving me to feel the guilt get even heavier as I try to close my eyes.

My dreams weren't ever very good. I've dreamt of Tartarus, a filthy dark pit. My stomach churned every time I was brought back there. The sky kept a hazy red hue, even though I knew I was miles underground, somewhere where the normal science of the earth and its crust wasn't brought into consult. The ground always felt uneven and crunchy beneath my feet. The air burned my lugs, the smell of gasoline almost made my head spin.

I watched as a young man and woman stumbled across the terrain. I knew them, I've recognized my parents. My dad's dark hair was streaked with blood, and he leaned heavily on Mom. They cursed and stumbled, Dad almost fell on this knees but Mom kept him up.

"Percy, we have to get going. I have a plan." Her voice was strange, rough and strained.

Then the dream changed, I never got far enough in the dream to see if Mom and Dad figured out how to survive the darkness of that hell. It was a story I never asked them about, I only knew from a few offhanded remarks from the rest of the seven and some campers. They spoke about it like it was a forbidden thing. Which I guess it was.

The dream shifted and now I was at Camp Half-Blood. The camp that my parents had grown up going to throughout their lives. Chiron, the camp counselor, sat in his wheelchair. We were at the Big House, looking down the valley at the rest of the camp. I could see campers milling about, doing sword fighting practice playing volleyball. It was a nice summer evening at camp, one that I've grown up to love myself. Chiron looked worried. He kept glancing up at the hill, like he was waiting for something.

"Chiron what's wrong?" A young girl walked up from around the porch, she was tall with brown hair and dark eyes.

"Oh, I'm just waiting Wendy." He muttered. Up the hill Thalia's pine sat, the sunset cast an orange light on the dragon that sat guarding the Golden Fleece. My Mom and Dad had been a part of getting that fleece, so many years ago. My parents were involved in a lot of things regarding the camp. "Something should be coming up that hill soon, I just don't know how soon."

"Is it something dangerous?" Wendy was a girl from the Hermes cabin, a counselor if I remember right. I've only seen her a few times throughout the summers. Watching her grow up alongside my brothers and me. Even though she was about three years older than me.

"I'm not sure," Chiron said.


	4. Chapter Three - Marie

Chapter Three

They left the cabin a week later. But I couldn't get the image of the pond out of my mind. There was something about it. Something that I just couldn't put my finger on. There wasn't a nymph that she could see there, if there was, she would've made herself present while they swam around. Logan tried to bring it up a few times, but Luke always let the conversation die. Mom and Dad spent the next few days watching every move that the four of them made. Uncle Jason made a point to ban the woods from the rest of the kids. And Bree wouldn't talk to me for the rest of the week.

Bree had been my friend since I was born. I'm only a few weeks older than she is, and while we lived at Camp Jupiter, we had spent every day together practically. During school they sat together and trained together. Bree was the granddaughter of Mars and Pluto. Roman to the core, her father acted as Praetor of Camp Jupiter for years. Now, they just lived in a nice apartment in New Rome. Bree considered her to be her best-friend. Now, she didn't know what to think.

Luke was angry with me too. Why was a good question, I didn't make him leave that night. He did it himself, but he still kept quiet for most of the drive to Long Island. Keeping himself occupied by staring out the window. Anything was better than talking to me apparently. Beck was chatting happily, he kept telling facts about the old wars that had happened. Mom and Dad answered him with yes or no. Yes for if a fact is right, and no for if it was wrong.

"Mom! You made the statues that are around New York to come alive to help with the Titan war, right?!"

"Yes," Mom said. She sounded happy, but her eyes were distant.

"Beck," I nudged him in the arm, "stop talking about it." I whispered as much as I could. "They don't like talking about that stuff."

"But they're answering me, they don't sound mad." He didn't whisper quietly enough.

"He's fine Marie," Dad said, he smiled in the rearview mirror. "Beck likes war facts, it's fine."

Beck didn't understand the fact that Mom and Dad's friends had died in that war. My brothers were named after the two people they were closest two. Beckendorf died trying to saving Dad. And Luke had died saving everyone. It was twisted in a way. Beck didn't understand what his namesake was for, but Luke did. It weighed on him when he went to Camp Half-Blood. Everyone referred to Kronos as the villain, and he was. But, Luke Castillian was still a huge part in it. I never understood why Mom and Dad would name their first born after something like that.

It wasn't long before Half-Blood hill camp into view. Dad parked the car on the side of the road. "You guys ready?" Mom asked, smiling.

We grabbed our bags from the truck and lugged them up the hill. This was always my favorite part. And I knew it was my parents favorite too. They always held hands as we hiked up the hill. This is where they met and this is where all their adventures took place. Dad had told us the story one time of when he discovered that he was a demigod.

"The minotaur chased our car to Half-Blood hill," he'd say, getting a far away look in his eyes. "I tried to save grandma, but he got her. She just turned to dust before I could understand what was going on. Uncle Grover saved me, I don't think I would've even made it through that first night."

It was always Luke's favorite story, he'd ask for it before bed. It gave me nightmares so I always begged for Dad to not say it.

Now the sun was setting on the camp, and I was reminded of my dream from a few weeks ago. Did that thing that Chiron was waiting for show up yet? Mom and Dad stopped at the top of the hill. Smiling at each other. It was almost sickening.

"Ew Mom Dad stop, please," I groaned. Their lovey dovey display wasn't not normal, but it wasn't wanted.

"Your parents are in love, be happy about it," Dad smirked at me.

"Gross," Luke took off down the hill, letting me and Beck follow.

The Big House didn't sit too far from the hill, and we rushed there first. Chiron stood in his centaur form waiting for us. "Children! It's so nice to see you all." He smiled and patted Luke's head. "You're getting too old Lucas, how old are you now?"

"Fourteen," Luke says, he's smiling from ear to ear. Luke always loved Chiron, he strived to be his favorite camper during the summers. But he never kissed ass, at least that's something I can credit him for.

"Ah, and Marie, thirteen right?" I nod, as Chiron pats my shoulder. His tweed jacket is the same as it always is, he looks like anyone's professor at a community college. Kind and wise. "Beck! You're a whopping eleven know."

Beck just nods, he's quiet when it comes to other adults, even when we can't get him to shut up at home.

"Where are Percy and Annabeth?" Luke nods his head toward the hill, Mom and Dad's figures can be seen finally making their way down the slope. Their smiles are so wide that I can see them from here. This is one of the only places where they really truly smile. "My favorite students!" Chiron makes his way toward them, and we watch as they greet and hug. Chiron always loved my parents more than I think he likes most of the campers here. They have a special place in his heart.

"Kids, why don't you guys go set up in the cabins. We'll be there soon." Dad shouts at us, while he turns back to Chiron and continues chatting.

Finding the cabins weren't hard when I have spent most of my childhood here. The campers milled about, laughing and talking with each other. I took my time walking toward the Poseidon cabin, it was one of the closest to the middle of the cabins so I got to see each one on my way. Luke said goodbye at his cabin, the Athena cabin looked the same as it had throughout my whole life. Other Athena kids were sitting in the grass in front of the cabin, they smiled and waved as Beck and Luke joined them. They always fit in there better than I had. I never had the brains that they had.

Luke liked to spend time standing over battle maps, studying the different tactics and strategies. It was what he was good at. Although he was the grandson of Poseidon, he acted most like the grandson of Athena. Beck fit in immediately, even with his dark hair, he got excided every time he stepped foot in that cabin.

I liked it too, they were technically my aunts and uncles in there. Even when some of them were younger than me. They were always friendly, but whenever I got stuck sitting with then, I found myself droning out their conversations of battle and books. The rest of the cabins looked the same, some of the kids I recognized. Wendy was standing in front of the Hermes cabin, laughing with some other people from what looked like the Apollo cabin. I gave her a slight wave when we locked eyes, she smiled back then went back to chatting with the others.

"Marie!" I barely had time to find who was calling me before two arms wrapped around me. The smell of hay enveloped me and I knew who it was.

"Rita," I laughed, "you can't just scare the crap out of me. One day I'm going to punch you on accident."

Rita was the daughter of Poseidon, a rare one. She was the only other one in my Dad's cabin with me. The first daughter of Poseidon since the whole fiasco with the Big Three not being allowed to have children. Of course, my Dad is here, so that went well. Rita looks like my dad, same dark hair and green eyes but that was about where the similarities ended. Rita was tall and blocky. Thick hips and square shoulders. She's always been more of an aunt to me than the Athenian kids.

"What did you just get in?" Rita smiled, she was obviously spending time in the Pegasus stables. She was wearing a thick flannel over her camp t-shirt, and some hay stuck out of her braid. "Where's your Dad?"

"He's talking to Chiron, I'm sure he'll be over soon." Of course, my dad had another sister that was from his mom's side. She's mortal and lives in New York with my grandparents. My dad never admitted it but he was closer to Venessa than he was to Rita. Venessa was softer and kinder, studying business at the University of New York. Rita was harsher, she spent time slicing kids down at swords play. She didn't get out of Camp much.

"He's a loser," she laughed, "let's get you settled, huh? I wanna practice with you before dinner."


	5. Chapter Four - Luke

Chapter Four

I smiled as I walked into the Athena cabin. It always felt at home here. The smell of the books and the hum of the campers around me. They were all his family as far as I was concerned. Marie always preferred to just think of their immediate family as the ones who mattered. But, I knew better. They were all connected, and sometimes I felt more connected to these people than Marie. Or Dad.

After shoving my stuff under a bunk in the boys' side, I wondered around until I found Andrew. Andrew was the counselor for the Athena cabin, he reminded me of Mom. They had the same air about them. Sturdy and confident, snappy sometimes but they were always right. Andrews eyes were the same storm gray as moms, the same eyes as Beck. That was the one thing that separated me from them the most, the green was tell-tale of Poseidon's cabin. Of my dad. Other than that, I could almost confuse myself as just another son of Athena. Instead of the grandson of Athena.

"Hey," I sat down beside Andrew. He was staring at a tablet in his hands, running them through pages of an ebook. It was rare to see electronics in camp. They were supposed to be too dangerous for demigods to use. It sent a signal to all monsters within a hundred-mile radius. It was like pinning yourself on their google maps. But now, thanks to Leo Valdez, electronics were something that we could modify to make them hide demigods from monsters. Who knew all we needed were iPhones made out of celestial bronze?

"Hey, what's up?" replied Andrew, he didn't take his eyes off of the screen.

"Just checking in, Beck's here too. Somewhere." Beck was long gone, doing who knows what. "What's that?"

"Oh just a report from some guys out in the field. There's been weird spotting of some monsters that haven't been seen for like twenty years. Chiron sent a quest for a few campers to go and check it out."

"Wait, isn't that normal? Monsters can pop up anytime."

"Yeah, but these ones are popping up in big groups. Ten or more of them just showing up in random parts of the country." Andrew finally looked up from the screen, his eyes were intense. His blond hair was curly and unruly, like he hasn't combed through it in a few days. "We're trying to connect with some demigods from Camp Jupiter, but for some reason they aren't really keen on helping us with this case."

"Why would they be?" I grabbed the tablet from him, the screen showed a map of the state of florida. The peninsula was circled around a few cities. Little arrows pointed to where groups of demigods were sent. Mila, Jacob, and Riley were sent down to the point. Where, a note said, that ten different monsters were found. Another group was labeled as Tessa, Yurl, and Ben were closer to the top of the state. Near another pop up of eleven different monsters.

"This looks almost normal Andrew. It's not like monsters don't pop up in groups from time to time." Andrew didn't like this answer, he grabbed the tablet back.

"Still, I think it's worth investigating. And the fact that Chiron agreed with me just made he feel like this is more than just normal." He turned the tablet off and shoved it under his pillow. He was wound up. It was rare to watch Andrew rub his forehead in stress, he's pretty good at hiding his feelings. Either he was especially stressed out, or he felt like he was able to show his feelings around me. I hoped in the later.

"Well, have you gotten any new on what it could be? Has anyone found anything?" Considering I just saw the map of Florida, who knows how many other groups of demigods were stationed around the country. If there were just six in Florida, there could be thirty more out there, hunting for some answers. "That's a lot of the camp out there."

"No, that's the frustrating part. They've just found monsters. No answers. Markey got hurt pretty bad out in Montana. We had to sent a rescue team out there to get her. Now there's only two Hermes kids stuck in the middle of Montana."

"That doesn't seem right, why not send them back here? A team of two isn't very smart." Quests consisted of more than just a pair of demigods, it wasn't right.

"I know! But Chiron said they'll be fine," Andrew sighed and brought his hands down from his face. "He insisted, said that they're not in the epicenter so they should be okay."

"'Should', that seems too vague."

"I've been considering talking to your parents," Andrew looked at me now, I could see that for some reason that was a big decision for someone like Andrew. He doesn't like to get advice from people. And for some reason, talking to his sister almost looked like defeat to him. "Annabeth would know what to do about this."

"They just got here, I'm sure they'll be around during dinner." I was done with that conversation now, there wasn't much I could help at that point. Obviously, my parents were better help than I could ever be. "I'll see you around."

The woods were a good place to hide during the day. Some campers wandered around the edge of it, but they never went very deep. The satyrs liked it though, and I always knew I could find Buck out here. He was sitting by the creek, wading his hooves in the cool water. Buck has always been one of my close friends. We met around the third time I came to camp. He was small for a satyr, so he stayed away from some of the other satyrs.

"Hey, fish brains." He greeted me in the same way he always did. I never liked the nickname, it was before I was claimed by Athena, back when I wasn't sure if I was going to a part of the Poseidon cabin or the Athena cabin. The nicknamed seemed to be a happy medium for Buck.

"Hey hairy," I sat beside him and let my shoes sit in the water. I let the water leak through the fabric, I could always make them dry later.

"Where's your sister?" Buck smirked over at me, and only smiles more when he sees my glare.

"You need to get over this weird crush you have on Marie, it's weird and gross." Buck only shrugs. "Have you heard about the weird monster pop ups that are making everyone so weird?"

"Yup, something about dreams plaguing everyone too," he throws a few pebbles into the creek. "Everyone's muttering about another start to another war."

"That's bull, not every weird occurrence starts a war."

"I know! But, since the two wars everyone is freaking out about it. Rachel gave a few weird prophecies to the quests and it's gotten everyone in a tizzy."

"Prophecies?"

"Yeah, something like water and fire must start the struggle or something."

"That doesn't make any sense," I reply. Obviously, Buck got the prophecies wrong. They're always weird and full of metaphors. Still the mention of fire and water got me nervous. Water was something I was really connected to.

"Eh, I wouldn't worry. It's probably nothing." Buck's hair was thick and long, it hid the little curly horns that he had sprouting from his head. You could only really see it if you looked closely.

"How can you be so chill about this stuff? What if this is the start of something?"

"Then it is, and were all going to be in for one hell of a ride."


	6. Chapter Five - Luke

Dinner was a mixture of same and old. I sat with the Athena cabin, Mom joined us right before dinner started. She smiled and patted my head before she went ahead and got her own dinner. I always loved dinner at Camp. I always got spaghetti, and it always tasted like Mom's. I've never told her that, she's convinced her cooking sucks. But I've never had better spaghetti than hers.

After giving an offering to the gods, I wound up sitting next to Andrew and Beck. Andrew wasn't talking much, but the rest of the Athena cabin was going crazy with theories on what was going on. Mom sat across from us, not saying much. I could see her eyes calculating. She was worried about it, she just didn't want to get the rest of the campers all worked up.

Marie and Dad smiled and waved at us from the Poseidon table. I've spent my fair share of time at the Poseidon table. Dad always cracked weird jokes about food before he ate it, and it started to get old after around the thirty millionth time. The Athena cabin is full of more conversation. Marie and Dad have fun just making fun of each other and stealing food from each other's plates.

Beck was trying to pry information out of Mom. He had heard the rumors, and he wanted to know if she knew what it was. She kept the answers brief. "I don't know what it is, Beck." She smiled at him. "But, I'm sure it's nothing. Don't worry about it."

Andrew frowned when she said that. I always knew that Andrew looked up to Mom. She was one of the seven, a major player in both of the major wars. He wanted her help, but she wasn't offering any. At least not now.

Chiron made the announcements for the day, a few new campers were waiting to get claimed. But I was almost sure two of them belonged to the Ares cabin. They both frowned and glared as they stood to get announced. The other one was an Apollo kid for sure, she smiled and waved at everyone.

"I'm happy to announce to everyone that two of our favorite mentors will be here this summer! Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase will be helping around camp this summer. Teaching their regular classes. I advise you all to listen carefully to what they have to say, they have a lot of experience to share with you all."

Mom hardly looked up, but Dad smiled at everyone he could look at. When he found Mom, his eyes got worried and his smile faltered. But, he just turned back to Marie and his sister with a fake smile. Marie caught on, we made eye contact and her green eyes were filled with concern. I shake my head, trying to convince her not to worry. I'll figure it out.

As dinner went on, I tried to take count of how many campers were really gone. The Hermes cabin was smaller than usual. The Ares cabin was diffidently smaller. No, wonder Andrew was so stressed, he didn't trust the Ares kids to get anything done. Hephaestus and Apollo were another smaller one.

"You're only letting the kids that aren't from the Big Three cabins go," I nudge him. "Right?"

Andrew nods, he spooned another mouthful of soup into his mouth before answer. I never understood what was so good about that soup that he always ate. "I didn't want them to attract more monsters than they needed. The Big Three are just too noticeable. I need to get information on the down low."

It made sense. It was easy to see how the Zeus kids, or the Hades kids would cause too much action to happen. Rita definitely wouldn't have been good for the job. She would've spent too much time trying to live up to my Dad that she'd make a fool of herself.

The Zeus table was getting bigger by the year. A lot of young kids, but some of them were around eighteen and seventeen. The group of five kept to themselves. Some of them were nice, Kathy was a good one. I've trained with her plenty of times, but the rest of them were too busy trying to lead every quest that they forget they belonged with the others.

Hades cabin was another story, there were at least ten of them. Quiet kids who liked to sneak out at night almost more than the Hermes cabin. Jake and Matilda were my friends from when I was young. They showed me how to shadow travel with them, and I never when back to hang out with them again. They gave me the chills too often.

Rita must be lonely. She's the only Poseidon kid other than my Dad and Uncle Tyson (who, in my eyes didn't really count, since he is a Cyclops). Most of the kids thought of her as too loud, trying too hard to be good at everything. My Dad is an idol to a lot of these kids. It's weird to be the kid of someone who was almost a God. Dad doesn't seem like a savior to me, he just seems like the guy who liked to surf in the mornings and makes jokes around the dinner table.

Dinner went by then it was time for the campfire. My parents found each other and sat side-by-side in the firelight. I sat with Andrew, and Marie came to join. She kept her distance from Rita sometimes too.

"Hey, so what's up with Mom?" She whispered to me before the music could start up.

"I don't know," I reply. "She's been acting weird for a few days."

"You don't think it has anything to do with the monster pop ups?"

"Could be, I don't know why she would be so worried."  
"Unless it's something that's big," Marie's eyes were big in the firelight. Her dark hair reflected the flames, it made her look like she was on fire. "Something that she just wants us to figure out without her."

"Why would she do that?"

Marie shrugs, and glances back at our parents. "Maybe she thinks it's something that we need to do for ourselves." She turned back to me. "You don't think she's still pissed about us sneaking out, do you?"

"No. I'm sure she's over that. But I wouldn't be surprised that she already knew about the monsters. That'd explain why she was so worried about us."

Marie just nodded to that, her lips were in a tight line. She looked like our mother when she worried. But when she smiled, she looked like Dad. I wondered who I looked like most, I hope it's myself.


End file.
